Fractured
by Fictionnaire
Summary: Anticipating 8 NFA challenge.  What I think should happen.  Spoilers for s7.  How far will Paloma go to bring down Agent Gibbs.  Gibbs faces the possibility of standing trial for the Hernandez' murder.  McGee and Ziva try and find Tony.  Will it work?
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This is what I think should happen in S8. I have not seen any promos or read anything about s8 so it'd be way off.

_**FRACTURED! The Year it all goes to Hell**_

Anticipating 8 Challenge Entry

When he went into Mexico to kill the man who killed Shannon and Kelly, Gibbs wasn't in the frame of mind to think about the consequences all these years down the track. Now he had put his father in jeopardy, his team… Basically anyone he knew had been threatened. And it would've been stupid for him to think that Paloma didn't have the resources to carry out her threats.

Gibbs knew there was a time in everyone's life where they had to take responsibility for what they had done. Twenty years later it was his turn. If Hart was right, then perhaps it was time to face the dire consequences. Gibbs stood up and put the box back onto the top of the wardrobe.

Xxxxxxx

**Celebratory Drinks**

Ziva raised her glass as Ducky, Abby and McGee toasted her triumph at becoming a US citizen. But her celebrations were dulled by the absence of Gibbs and Tony. Though she wasn't too surprised that Tony wasn't there. Their relationship had been strained for quite some time and whenever they got to the point of almost talking it out there were interruptions or invisible barriers blocking them. Perhaps their chance for reconciliation had passed.

She knew Gibbs would probably never show since he seemed to have a natural aversion to ceremonies. But still it hurt her. "I am sure they will come by later and join the celebrations," it was as if Ducky was reading her mind.

"I do not know what you are talking about," Ziva hid the fact that she was lying.

Ducky gave her a knowing nod. There would be plenty of time to worry about it.

"So… How does it feel to be American?" McGee asked to lighten up the somber mood.

"Well I do not feel the sudden urge to go to a baseball game and pig out on hot dogs," Ziva laughed. It felt good to get all the studying out of the way and now could concentrate on her new life.

"Oh," Abby said sadly as she came out of the kitchen. "Just when I made hotdogs as well," she put the plate on the middle of the table. "Your first American food as an American… Hotdog with bacon and mustard… Of course if you don't want one," Abby told her.

"Usually, I wouldn't recommend this to anyone but since it's a special occasion I'll forgo my usual dietary lecture," Ducky said as he grabbed one.

"Alright," McGee said. "Tony's going to pissed he missed this," he joked as they all began biting into their hotdogs. For a moment there was silence as they enjoyed the peaceful time and how things were right.

Xxxxxxxxx

Mexico

Tony couldn't figure out the reason why Gibbs' Boss would be calling him Probie but there was one thing that was clear. Franks was out to kill Alejandro… Right out in the open. The man was bold but this course of action would be deadly and that could mean dire consequences for US/Mexico relationship.

He watched Franks approach Alejandro. That was when Tony thought it was stupid for the target to be so out in the open like he was. Either stupid or he had protection. Tony scanned the area. Nobody looked out of place and that was the worry.

Franks had his hand on the firearm and saw Alejandro in sight. This was to finish up Gibbs' mess and protect his Probie from a horrible outcome. Something that he him self was responsible for starting.

Tony saw (a) man reacting to Franks approaching Alejandro. The man reached around his back. That was enough to kick his body into action. He managed to avoid running into someone as he tackled the man to the ground and rested his knee into the man's back and pulled out the pistol.

Gunshots rung out, it was hard to tell if they were from Franks or not. But there were more than one type of gun. Tony returned fire. "Get out of here," Tony heard Franks call out.

There wasn't enough time to think about where to run… That would come later. Right now he had to put some distance between him and those doing the shooting. "Mike!" Even with the problems they had in the past with each other, Tony still felt an obligation to make sure he did what he could.

After all… Franks was the boss' boss.

Amidst the confusion of people running and screaming, Tony felt someone pull his arm to get him moving in the desired direction. There was a breath of slight relief as he realized it was Franks. There was no time to look back to see how many men were after them.

Xxxxxxxx

Mallard Estate

McGee couldn't help but laugh as Ziva made another mistake with an American idiom and received a lighthearted punch in the arm from Abby. "Just being made an American citizen does not mean my English would suddenly improve," Ziva defended her self.

"Luckily they didn't put American idioms on the test," McGee responded. After the last few weeks it was good to finally be able to relax and joke around.

"That won't be entirely fair, Timothy. Considering that even some natural born Americans don't have a good grasp of the English language," Ducky said as he poured another drink.

"Thank you, Ducky," Ziva said.

"In our defense… We speak American," Abby joined in the argument. She found it funny since now they had two on two about speaking English. "So, in two days you'll be officially going to work as an American for the first time," Abby joked. There was no way they were going to let her down so easily.

"Actually, I'm taking the day off and going where… Surfing? That is it?" Ziva chuckled. "How is it said? Taking a sickie," she smirked.

Xxxxxxxxxx

**Mexico**

Tony and Franks ran into the large crowd where they lost each other. Tony didn't want to risk looking back. "How many people have guns?" He asked to nobody. There were only one or two at first but there numbers seem to be growing.

Unfortunately, the direction he was running to took him into open ground. "Stop!" Tony heard one of the chasers call out. Like hell, Tony thought. The sound of automatic gunfire caused Tony to freeze. He ducked, as if it would help, and held his arms skyward.

"Hey," Tony said cheerfully. It was more nerves than anything. "Are you going to kill me? Because I hate waiting… Anticipation's a -," Tony was hit in the stomach. That soon wiped the cocky grin from his face and in its place was a grimace of pain.

"Lift him up," the man who hit him ordered the others.

Tony felt safer doubled over in pain. Perhaps it was because he was a smaller target doubled over. The man had a look of anger on his face and knocked Tony unconscious with the gun's butt.

Xxxxxxxxx

**STILLWATER**

Paloma Reynosa always believed in swift justice. That allowed her to rise up in the drug cartel without much opposition. On the outside, Paloma looked seasoned but also didn't look like a murderer. But this mask hid the analytical and deadly mind. She knew that outright murder wouldn't get her what she wanted but having Gibbs believe she would murder those around him should serve her purpose.

"Can I help you?" Jackson Gibbs had asked.

"I was traveling through and I'm getting my car serviced because it was making some real weird noises," Paloma was in an old fashioned town, talking with an old fashioned man. No old fashioned man could resist a damsel in distress.

"What can I do for you in the mean time?" Jackson asked as he stood behind the counter. He had received the message from his son loud and clear. And his rifle was now in arm's length.

"I wanted to get a bottle of water," Paloma answered.

"They're kept just over there," Jackson pointed to the fridges. He turned his head upwards to watch the woman go to the fridge. Great! Jackson thought. His son had made him suspicious of everybody.

"Can you tell me if there are any good places to eat around here?" Paloma asked. "Since I have to be here until tomorrow," she told him. "Forgive my rudeness, Sir… But it looks like you were born, raised and bred here," she continued.

"Not rude at all… I was always here and the town was built around me," Jackson laughed. "There's a place on Lewis Avenue that has a plate sized steak that's to die for," he said animatedly and gave her directions.

"Thank you," Paloma smiled at the older man's charms. He was so unlike his coldhearted son who murdered her father. It's a shame that she'd have to respond in kind. But some things could never be laid to rest.


	2. Chapter 2

**FRACTURED!**

Gibbs had high-tailed it out of DC and to Stillwater. His gut was doing somersaults to the point of feeling like he was going to throw up. The past had come back with a vengeance and threatened everything he had rebuilt. The relationship with his father, even the fractured team relationship was slowly being pieced together.

Fortunately, Stillwater was never known for its heavy traffic. He was able to get to his father's residence without hassle. The car had barely come to a halt when Gibbs exited the vehicle. There wasn't time to worry about safety. The door was unlocked and Gibbs rapped his knuckles on the door until they hurt.

"Dad!" He called out.

"Come in," Jackson Gibbs said flatly as if nothing was amiss.

Gibbs walked in sideways and immediately scanned the living room. "Who did you bring in?" The living area was clear. His Father was alone.

"What?" Jackson was surprised at the tone.

"Damn it, Dad. I told you to stay with someone," Gibbs snapped.

"Leroy!" Jackson raised his voice to shut his son up.

"Perhaps your father is smarter than you give him credit for," Paloma Reynosa stepped out from the dining room. She stood with one hand behind her back and leaned forward slightly.

"Cup of coffee?" Jackson offered to make some.

Gibbs stared at his father as he went into the kitchen. He couldn't believe that his father was playing host to Paloma. "If you thinking of going for your gun, Agent Gibbs, need I remind you that I am not stupid. You think I am alone? You think I don't have a how you say… Ace in the hand?" Paloma asked. She smiled a dangerous looking smile.

"Killing me will not change anything," Gibbs kept his cool.

"I know…" She held up her cell phone and showed the picture of Tony DiNozzo looking the worse for wear. "But destroying you will make me a whole lot happier," she said to Gibbs. Her demeanor didn't change.

Gibbs approached her and without giving anything away, he struck her on the side of the face and wrapped his hand around Paloma's throat and applied pressure. "People will die… I'm not afraid to die, Agent Gibbs. Are you willing to have more blood on your conscience? If not, I suggest you listen to me," she still remained calm. Gibbs angrily pushed her back. She had the upper hand and she knew it.

Xxxxxxxx

**Unknown Location**

Tony couldn't see anything except unforgiving darkness. He could taste blood on his lips. The captors had beat him every time he had said something out of line. His heart rate increased when he heard the footsteps approach.

"There was this scene in Tarrantino's Inglourious Basterds," Tony laughed. He remembered the sound of somebody banging a cave with a bat. The scene where NAZIs were captured by Aldo's men felt familiar. Those Nazi bastards would've heard their fate coming.

"You are tough," he heard a man with a heavy Mexican accent said. "Why are you holding out? No rescue for you…" He told Tony.

Tony laughed. That just seemed to irritate his captors more. "Under the assumption that I believe I'm gonna be rescued. Waking up tied to a chair brings back memories," so far they had only pumped him for basic surface information. That could only mean one thing… He was being softened up.

"Ah… A pessamist," Alejandro's young face came into view.

"Always been known as a glass half empty kind of guy," Tony shrugged. He knew he was getting under the skin of his captor and he was going to keep at it until there were some answers at least. "The suspense is killing me… What you want with me?" He asked.

"We're keeping you here so that your Agent Gibbs will stand trial for the murder of my father, Pedro Hernandez," Alejandro responded.

Tony scoffed. "You do realize that the statute of limitations on murder has passed in Mexico," he reminded him.

"That is why… It is to be done in the US. Any which way… Your Agent Gibbs is being brought down," Alejandro told him. "And on the other hand we want eyes and ears in a Federal Agency," Tony looked at him questioningly and Alejandro pointed to him. "We will make it worth your while," Alejandro grinned.

"I've been held prisoner by better men than you," Tony shot back.

"You ARE still alive, Agent DiNozzo… If you do not serve your purpose you will be killed," he said flatly.

"Do I have Traitor engraved on me?" Tony looked down at his chest. "Nope… Guess not. I think you think you're Brad Pitt and I'm a NAZI. Inglourious Basterds… Afraid that once a NAZI removes their uniform they're wearing they are indistinguishable from the general population so he carves a symbol into their heads and therefore easily ID'd when the war is over… I don't have the mark… I won't be rescued and Gibbs will never deal with the likes of you," Tony's head snapped to the side when he was punched. "Brad Pitt's a good actor… Don't take it out on me if you don't like him," he said with a laugh.

"You will break… You will do what we ask," Alejandro was positive about that. Everybody had a breaking point.

"Okay… Okay… I got it, I got it," Tony said seriously but then smiled. "Nope… Lost it. I knew a Brad Pitt once… Nice but nothing like the actor," he quickly shut his mouth

"You really want to play it this way, Agent DiNozzo? We will play it this way," Alejandro said. He looked deceptively like a nice guy. But that successfully hid a nasty streak. Surprise was one hell of a weapon. Tony was soon listening to the footsteps fading away.

Xxxxxxx

McGee looked at Gibbs' empty desk then at Tony's desk before continuing his work. After all that had been going on, it just seemed so quiet. But at NCIS, there was always something to go on. Ziva repeated the actions of McGee before looking in his direction.

"Something is wrong," McGee said. Neither Tony nor Gibbs had been at Ziva's ceremony. She didn't admit it, but the action shocked her.

"What? There is nothing wrong," Ziva hadn't realized that she was occasionally looking at the two empty desks.

"You may be right, Agent McGee," Vance stepped into the bullpen. "Have any of you heard from Agent DiNozzo and Agent Gibbs?" His tone gave nothing away. There were times when you had no choice but to send Agents on dangerous missions. He had no delusions about that.

"Tony's missing? Where?" McGee stood up.

"And Gibbs," Ziva added.

"Agent DiNozzo's in Mexico… The last I heard," Vance said. Getting other agencies involved would be a last resort and one he'd hate to do. "We have no idea where Agent Gibbs is… If he calls order his ass back here," Vance responded. His cell phone rung and as soon as he took the call he double timed it upstairs.

Ziva and McGee were left in the bullpen to contemplate their next move without a starting point. Gibbs' desktop phone rung. The two looked at each other then at the vacant desk. McGee rushed to pick it up.

"He isn't here… No… Yep," McGee grabbed a pen and pad from Gibbs' desk drawer and sat down in the Lead Agent's chair. He began writing something down. "No! Don't do that," his voice came out loudly. McGee thought for a moment and covered the mouthpiece with his left hand.

"Ziva! Someone's been trying to access Tony's medical records. What would be the reason to backdoor it into someone's medical records?" He didn't need to hear Ziva's answer to know it. "Get this to Abby… Tell her to find you a flight to Mexico any way possible. Give her this password to get into Bethesda Hospital's Mainframe… We're going to slow it down and trace the hacker," McGee took a deep breath.

A thin wry smile appeared on Ziva's lips. "On it… Boss," she said. It was a way to comment on his taking charge of the situation. She headed towards the elevator.

McGee leaned back in the chair and smiled for a split second. But then kicked the chair back up as he switched on Gibbs' computer and rushed to turn Tony's on. At least he didn't have to worry about booting his or Ziva's on. His mind began to race when the log in password. Through deductive reasoning, it had to be something to do with his fraternity or movie.

"What is going on, Agent McGee?" Vance had been observing the interaction from the landing. Agent Gibbs had trained his team well and they could function under any circumstance. Most of the members anyway. He saw McGee darting from computer to computer.

"Someone is attempting to hack into Tony's medical records… We believe that since Tony has not been heard of and this could only mean he's captured or incapacitated. If we slow the Bethesda computers down enough… We'll be able to trace the trail back and get an accurate location. Abby is organizing transport for Ziva to head to Mexico," McGee looked at Vance who was furiously typing away at Gibbs' computer. "I mean, if that's alright by you. I probably should've…"

Vance held up one hand to silence the young Agent. "Did I say something, Agent McGee?" He asked. Fortunately, being a Director as well as very computer literate, he was able to bypass the password protected log in of his Agents' computers.

"No sir," McGee shook his head.

"Carry on," Vance pulled a toothpick out of his pocket and placed it in his mouth. "I will get a couple of agents to accompany her," Vance didn't look up but he could feel McGee's eyes upon him. "Unless you have an objection, Agent McGee," he paused on the spot.

"No, Sir," McGee answered quickly.

Xxxxxxxx

**Unknown Location, Mexico**

Every now and again, Tony would hear footsteps… Many times nobody talked to him or approached him. But whenever they did, there was something going on. And now he was bathing in the warmth of freshly made fire. For the first time he was able to see his prison. The steel door, walls and newly brought in crates glowed an eerie red. Tony had watched some silently build the fire. Any cockiness had long disappeared from his face.

Alejandro used a large knife to cut through Tony's shirt and tear it off. "Thank you for volunteering information to us Mister DiNozzo. Your reaction to yourself when you mentioned Brad Pitt got me thinking. Anything can be found on the internet. But I'm not a patient man… You don't get anything by just sitting around. Do you agree, Mister DiNozzo?" Alejandro reached into a crate and pulled a heavy metal object out.

"Blacksmith tools can be used to make many things. A lot of deadly weapons of course," Alejandro placed the metal tongs half in the fire making sure the handle end would not be too hot. "The tools are also excellent devices of pain, torture and eventual death. In a small German village in the sixteenth century as ultimate punishment such as a serial killer or similar, they would heat up implements such as these tongs here. Then find a fleshy part of skin… They would pinch the skin of the person and slowly peel that piece off," Alejandro acted like he was stoking a warm friendly fire.

Tony leaned back into the chair in a vain attempt to put as much distance between him and the fire as possible.

"They tore off as many strips of skin as there were victims where possible. The highest count of this punishment was fifteen strips I think. Correct me if I'm wrong," Alejandro continued his long, slow explanation. "It's amazing how much a human body can tolerate before dying or even passing out… Ever wondered how much YOU can endure before you die?" Alejandro smiled as he stood up. Tony could feel the heat radiating from the end of the tongs.

Tony shook his head slowly. "No… No," Tony said. He became more desperate with each passing moment. "Please…"

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

_**Jackson Gibbs Residence, Stillwater**_

They had been talking for some time. "Thanks for the food, Senor Gibbs," Paloma said sincerely. "Now that we have no empty stomachs and are in a more relaxed manner we should be able to discuss things," Paloma crossed her legs and looked directly at the man who murdered her father.

"Yes," Gibbs responded without saying anything else.

"My request is simple," there was a snort coming from Gibbs. "Alright… An order. I know you murdered my father. I want you to stand trial to be brought down by the justice you had sworn to uphold," Paloma made it perfectly clear.

"Two things first. Your assurance that no harm will come to anyone I know," Gibbs said. He used one hand to articulate the point.

"Leroy!" Jackson tried to interrupt.

"And… I am to be tried in a US court," Gibbs added.

"There will be no chance of you to weasel out of this one by having it outside of the US," Paloma responded. She had no intention on extraditing the NCIS agent to Mexico. The whole incident could become a political mess. The less politics involved the better and this way, it will be all above board.

"DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked, referring to the information he was shown earlier.

"When things are fully set in motion… He will be released. No sooner," Paloma's tone didn't change. So far, things were going according to plan.

"Call the authorities, Dad," Gibbs' expression changed.

"Son," Jackson was acting defiant. There had to be another way.

"Give us a few minutes," Gibbs said to Paloma. It wasn't a time to ask nicely. He stood up and studied some of the photographs on the mantelpiece and took the one of his mother and father down. That was taken a long time ago. A simple picture of them standing in front of a new house that would last all these years showing a simple time.

"She would be proud of you, Son," Jackson stood behind him.

"Dad… You remember how terrible you felt when you killed that young man in self defense," Gibbs said. It was a trying time and it had shaken his father up badly. "I murdered a man. I chased him down and put a bullet in his head. Now, it's time to face up to it as a Gibbs would face up to it," Gibbs put the picture back where it belonged. "If I don't do this… More people will die… Dad," Gibbs lowered his head and closed his eyes.

"What is it Leroy?" Jackson put a hand on Gibbs' shoulders.

"I need you, Dad. I need you to just stand by me, just be there," Gibbs sighed heavily, refusing to look up or at his Father.

"I made the mistake of not doing that before, Son. I won't do that again," Jackson squeezed his son's shoulder before going towards the telephone. He didn't like the idea one bit but was willing to stand by the actions and be there.

* * *

A/N: The story that Alejandro tells about using the tongs... It is a factual story that was in Bendburg Germany. Hope people are enjoying this. Comments and criticism welcomed.


	3. Chapter 3

Fractured 3

_**A/N: Thank you for the reviews.**_

_**Summary: Under quick planning… McGee runs the operation from M-TAC.**_

It wasn't long before Vance received the call from his office. McGee waited in M-TAC and kept his cell open and at the ready. It took time for them to get a relatively accurate location. McGee also knew that over the US skies there were up to eight satellites going over land at any given time. It was probable that he could get some sort of picture on the ground.

There was a headset on the chair beside him. Since there was a satellite near the border of the Mexican border they'd be able to get a bird's eye view. But the window of opportunity was closing

"Abs… You got anything yet?" McGee got tired of waiting and called Abby. He was beginning to understand the reason why Gibbs is so impatient.

"Timmy… I was waiting until…" Abby said into the phone. She wanted as much accuracy as possible but was interrupted by a clearing of the throat. "What?" Abby asked.

"We're working to a deadline, Abby. What you got?" McGee asked. Things were beginning to make sense with the superiors' side of things anyway. Abby told relayed the information and quickly hung up. Vance was nowhere to be seen. He hadn't been heard from since receiving a call at the office.

"Here put these numbers through to Alpha-Tango," McGee said to someone working the computer in M-TAC. He donned the headset and adjusted it. He always got butterflies in the stomach when he took this position.

"Patch me through," McGee said. At the moment the only picture on screen were the ones that were coming from little cameras on the headsets of the team that were sent in. Judging by the close quarters they were still in the helicopter.

"Alpha-Bravo, Alpha-Charlie, Alpha-Delta and Alpha-Echo," McGee went through the checklist. The cameras panned around so that he could see each one of them. Ziva was there and so was Agent Nichols. He wandered why she was there. The other three were picked up from where the chopper had come from. "Co-ordinates have been sent to your pilot's SatNav. CIA has given us access to a satellite that has been patrolling around the Mexico-US borders so I'll be getting a bird's eye view of the situation," McGee assured the team.

"_Roger that_," Ziva responded. For a ground crew of but five people they were pretty well armed.

"Good luck, team," McGee said. There was another sigh of relief when the larger pictures from the satellite came on. It was a surprise to see Agent Nichols there but Vance said he was sending a couple of people into the operation.

The silent footage showed the low flying helicopter. McGee paced around a little as he waited for it to land. There was a counter showing how far they were from the spot. "_Woah!_" A pilot said. The chopper suddenly banked to the right.

"What happened?" McGee said.

"_Someone's firing_," the pilot remained calm. They had gone under the cover of darkness but there was always some risk. "Someone's signaling us. Not firing. Going in for a landing," the Pilot continued.

McGee nodded without saying anything. He checked his watch to see how much time he had left. "Do you see who it is?" McGee asked.

It was impossible to make out who was who on the ground. The lighting was still poor. Agent Nichols pulled out a light and shone it into the face quickly before switching it off. "Franks," McGee noticed the ragged unshaven face of former Lead Agent Mike Franks. "What are you doing here? Someone ask him that..." he asked.

The question was relayed by Ziva. "_I know where DiNozzo is being held. These young ones here are from the Mexican Police and will assist us. You can't get any closer to the complex unless you want to land this bird in its central helipad_," Franks said. "_Tell the Director the best option is too proceed on foo_t," he explained.

"Go ahead," McGee gave the go ahead. He didn't like this one bit. But they had some intelligence on the ground. "You need to hurry up," McGee ordered before switching off his mic. He could see the shaky camera view from the Alpha-Tango team.

"Get me Director Mason up on screen," McGee turned around. As time went on it began feeling more comfortable in this position. Except knowing that a screw up will cost lives. Now he needed a discussion with the CIA Director. He just realized that he had been pacing around.

"Doing it now," one of the Techs said.

McGee nodded and turned around to see Vance sitting on one of the chairs behind him. "Sir… I thought I would," McGee began to remove the headset.

Vance waved his hand. Out of all the agents in his command, McGee was high on the respect list. Actually, Gibbs represented the past of NCIS while McGee was the future. That really showed up when the young agent returned from LA. "If I see the need you will be relieved. Carry on, Agent McGee," Vance said. Really, Agent Gibbs could only take the team so far with his tactics.

"Yes, Sir," McGee nodded.

"On screen," one of the Techs told him.

Director Mason sat at his desk and was speaking via videophone. "Sir… Thank you for the loan of Star 5. We need more time with it for the safety of our operation," McGee cut to the chase.

"How much time?" Mason asked. He was a tall man and quite round as well. As if he was turning his nose up at everyone, his chin seemed to stick out deliberately.

"We don't know," McGee responded quickly.

Director Mason thought for a moment. "I hope you understand, Agent McGee that due to both Intelligence and National Security, we can't afford to let Star 5 concentrate on an area of a foreign country especially one that's as sensitive as Mexico for an indefinite amount of time," Mason placed his hands on the keyboard. "How much time do you need, Agent McGee?" He wanted a definite response.

"However much time you can spare us, Sir," McGee responded.

Vance cleared his throat and held up two fingers so that only McGee could see.

"On second thoughts… Two hours extension should suffice," McGee corrected himself. The Director typed something and nodded.

"You have it," Mason responded before turning the screen off.

McGee exhaled slowly and turned to Director Vance who looked him right in the eye. "You do not go into that situation without knowing what you want," Vance told him as chewed on his toothpick.

"I don't know how much time I need, Sir," McGee explained.

"You don't let them know that… That's when you come up with a phantom number. Two, three in this situation. Never go in and give them the upper hand as soon as you walk in," Vance advised.

"Yes, Sir," McGee said as he faced the large M-TAC screen again. It felt strange to have the Director giving him some advice like that. "Alpha-Tango ETA on until the target area?" McGee licked his lips. During the talking and the stress were causing his lips to dry out.

"_ETA Fifteen minutes_," Ziva's voice came through. By the sound of feet hitting ground, the team was running pretty fast and probably uneven ground.

"Can you spread out a little? All I'm seeing is one big blur," he waited. The blur on the large screen broke into people. "Zoom out," he told the Tech who had control over the Star-5 satellite. This allowed him to see further in front of the team.

"A couple of buildings and fence coming up at approximately two o'clock at two hundred yards," McGee told them. It was easy to go by the clock face way of telling them which direction things are.

"_Roger that_," Ziva said as their pace slowed.

"Two figures at twelve and two," McGee told them. He couldn't tell if they were armed or not. The others were wearing NVGs and therefore have a much better look at ground level. That was when small flashes appeared on screen. The sound of gunfire blasted through the headset causing McGee to momentarily flinch as the high pitched hissing echoed through his ears.

There was movement on both sides until the two unknown figures on the screen stopped still. "_Targets neutralized going further_," Ziva responded.

There was a sudden blast on the screen and a loud explosion. _What the fuck? _McGee's mind screamed at him. "What the hell was that? Alpha-Tango talk to me. What's going on?" The cameras were having a hard time picking everything up in between the jerky movements and darkness.

"_Making a hole, Sir_," Agent Nichols voice answered. "_Going in_," she responded.

McGee knew it was too late to tell her to hold back when a figure on screen moved forward. "Where is that firing coming from?" McGee asked. He heard the shots but nothing was seen.

"_Clear_," Someone said. Then McGee heard something in Mexican.

"_Clear… They're just barracks and eating area_," Ziva's voice said.

"What?" McGee looked from side to side people. "You have to talk to me. It's tough to see everything going on. Narrate to me or something," McGee ordered them.

"_Clearing the outer buildings, McGee_," Ziva sighed. Her voice was partially covered by more gunfire. "There's an entrance to the main complex. We're going in," she called out.

"_Frag! Bang! Clear_!" Agent Nichols shouted out.

Another explosion. "I can't see what's inside. I'll be blind and I can hardly see through your lenses either," McGee told them. He didn't realize that his voice was raised slightly to match what the volumes of the members of Alpha-Tango.

"_Even Satellites can not see through walls_," Ziva said to him.

"Just warning you… Be careful, Ziva," McGee told her. They were sure that that was the area DiNozzo was being held captive. But now all he could do was listen to the commotion and man he needed a drink. He watched them go in and then there were no people to see.

Interference began wreaking havoc on the cameras as even the headset became almost inaudible because of static. "Can you hear me?" He asked. There was only a certain amount of voice coming through. "Damn it!" He cursed loudly. He ran his hands through his short hair and removed the headset before sitting down. Now it was dead air.

Abby walked through the door. She offered him a bottle of water without saying anything. She looked at the screen and didn't see anybody. "What happened?" Abby asked. "Is everything alright? Are they okay?" She heard McGee almost choke on the water she had got him. "Careful there," she told him.

"So dry," he responded. All he could do was watch the screen and he donned the headset again. It had been a tough time all right. Tough for everyone. While they were enjoying themselves, Tony was getting into trouble. God knows where Gibbs had gotten to. It was safe to assume that Abby didn't know since she hadn't said anything.

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

**Location: Compound, Mexico**

There were a couple of really close calls. They couldn't even contact McGee. Something was interfering with their communications. Professionally, they cleared room by room. Ziva put her ear to the large door. A couple of people could be heard talking on the other side. They were eagerly talking.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Tony was mentally exhausted. He thought he heard a couple of explosions and gunfire. He wasn't sure if he had heard it for real. "Did I hear gunfire?" He lifted his head up for a second. Hours, days or weeks? He couldn't get his mind around how long he'd been there.

Two people near him were agitated. Usually when people got agitated around him he got hurt… They talked but Tony couldn't understand a word of their language. Two shots rung out and the talking stopped. "Target Acquired," he heard the Israeli accent.

"Argh," Tony grunted as the lights were turned on. Fortunately, whoever turned the light off.

"Tony?" Ziva approached him. This time he felt someone lift his head up. "Are you okay?" She asked him.

He scoffed. "Nice try! This is good. Drive me to delusions… I'm not doing it," Tony responded. Someone started untying his hands. He allowed his head to drop. There was no point in playing along with what he saw as a hallucination. It had to be.

"Can you walk?" Ziva asked. She turned around when the others were talking amongst themselves.

"Are you kidding me?" Tony asked. There was no way he was assisting them.

As soon as Tony was lifted to his feet they could feel his body go limp. Ziva immediately checked for the pulse. There was a faint pulse. Agent Nichols wrapped Tony's free arm around her neck and assisted Ziva in dragging the Agent out.

Xxxxxxxxx

**M-TAC**

McGee watched the screen once it turned blank. The two extra hours seemed to have flown by and now there was nothing. Abby had left M-TAC to see if Ducky had heard anything. McGee sat in the chair and waited.

"I don't know," McGee sighed.

Vance was sitting next to him. "You've done all you can. You did great," he assured him.

"I don't know," was all that McGee could say. He didn't feel like he was built for this thing. Didn't matter how much field experience he had, there was nothing like this in his experience. "Wish I knew where Gibbs was," McGee hadn't realized he actually said that out loud.

"You've done all you can… Times like these it's up to the men down there. Oh and Agent Gibbs is in custody," Vance didn't turn to look at McGee when he said that.

"Cu-Custody?" McGee raised his eyebrows.

"He's turned him self into the authorities for murder," Vance said coldly.

McGee's stomach turned. That meant there was a possibility he was the only member of Team Gibbs left. "Oh God," McGee said. He understood why Tony moved around when mulling things over. It allowed him to ignore anything but what his mind was working on.

"_Package on board…_" The helicopter's voice came through the headset.

McGee punched the air. "Yes!" He yelled. But then realized that people were around. "Thank God," McGee added.

"No thanks necessary," the Pilot chuckled. "_The package's pretty rattled_," he added.

"The others?" He asked.

"_Minor scrapes… One wounded – scratch, she's telling me_," the Pilot answered.

McGee rubbed his forehead. "Good… Tell those others thanks as well. Guess should by them a drink," he said.

"_Don't know what you're talking about, Sir… We've only got the packages we came in with and an extra_," The Pilot corrected him. "_We're taking off now_," he added.

"But the…," McGee began to say.

"_It was just us, Sir_," The Pilot interrupted him. "_You must be confused_," he told him.

"I expect a debriefing as soon as you return," McGee was confused.

"_Yes, Sir_," The Pilot responded.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry about this... I'm so not used to writing McGee so forgive me if he's too OOC. as usual any Criticism and positive reviews welcomed with open arms**


	4. Chapter 4

Fractured 4

Ziva was waiting with Agent Nichols at the airbase next to the helicopter that they had taken. "We were told to report for a debriefing as soon as we landed," Ziva said. Really she just wanted to accompany Tony to Bethesda.

"I'm not stopping you," came a mumbled response from inside. His voice protruded from the door and occasionally moved around.

"What are you doing?" Ziva was curious.

"Post Mission check," the pilot said. He still hadn't changed out from his green flight gear. "Ouch," he said.

"You need a hand, Lewis?" Ziva asked.

"No!" Lewis snapped quickly. "At least I know that if I am to take this one up again I know I only have to perform the pre-flight check. It's a plus if one knows their craft inside and out," Lewis started talking. He had instructed the others to not be near the bird where he was working.

McGee approached the area. Abby wasn't too far behind. "What happened?" He approached. The Pilot had been cryptic. And the others weren't too helpful.

"Mike Franks is working with the Mexican authorities. The least people to know that the better," Ziva explained and Brenda nodded. "Was going to go to Bethesda but knew if we keep going in all directions so it would be more desirable to wait, yes?" Ziva said.

There was a loud metallic sound in the chopper. "Stay back," he said when he heard the footsteps. "Sorry, I guess I'm a bit possessive," he explained.

"That firing you encountered?" He asked Lewis.

"We were being signaled," Lewis got out of the chopper and was given something by Agent Nichols. "Excuse me, Sir. Wasn't aware we had company," he said looking at the Goth standing beside McGee.

"You can speak freely in front of Abby," McGee was about to say something when Lewis went back in the chopper. "So what about Mike Franks?" He asked.

"Did you know that some old television sets that if off station and tuned into static can actually pick up cell phone calls or radio transmissions?" Lewis asked. "It wasn't until almost 15 years ago where they fixed that problem… Anyway, Mike Franks is working with the Mexican Authorities and it had to be kept very secret. That should explain my reaction over the radio, Sir," Lewis explained.

"I remember that when I was younger. Used to tune my TV in and listen in to my neighbor's cell calls," Abby earned a curious look from McGee. "Give me a break, Timmy it was before reality TV," she laughed.

"So we were very careful… If word gets out it could ruin the whole thing," Ziva said.

"Right," Lewis said as he exited the helicopter once again. "If you don't have anything else for me… I'd really like to go and clean up," Lewis said quickly.

"Who was shot?" McGee asked. He nodded in Lewis' direction. "Thank you so much for your help," he said to the Pilot.

"All part of the job," Lewis smiled and gave Agent Nichols a glance before leaving the area.

She nodded. "I must get back to NCIS as well," she added and left as well.

Ziva showed McGee her arm. "Would not call it getting shot more of grazed passed," she corrected him.

"If that's all sorted out… Shouldn't we be going to Bethesda now," Abby said impatiently. Ziva was all right and now they just seemed to be hanging around.

"Enjoyed being in charge, McGee?" Ziva asked as they headed to the car.

"Not much choice," McGee grunted a bit. Sure, most agents would love the chance to take control over a situation… Give them the chance to prove their own worth. Part of him was glad he got the chance to show the Director what he was capable of. He decided not to tell the others about Gibbs yet. It was better to handle one problem at a time in this situation.

Xxxxxxxxxx

Gibbs sighed as he sat down on the chair. He thought that having his hands cuffed was unnecessary but didn't say anything about it. The only reason why he was in this other room was because he had visitors coming. The armed guard watched every move he made.

"Bossman," Abby almost knocked Gibbs to the ground with one of her tackles.

"No touching," the guard said.

"Are you all right, Gibbs?" Ziva was the first one to speak.

"I'm fine," Gibbs sat down at the desk. "Actually my lawyer is due any time soon. I'm more concerned about, DiNozzo," he said with a sigh.

The three looked at each other before McGee answered. "He's okay. But as far as you know he's still being held captive," McGee said to him.

"I'm sorry, Gibbs," Abby said suddenly. She had felt guilty since successfully completing the lab reports that put all this into motion.

"Look… This is how its gotta be," Gibbs got their attention. "I'm just going to make this perfectly clear… If any of you lie to protect me or cover for me then consider yourself unemployed and that goes for everyone," he told them.

"You know who is defending you?" Ziva asked.

Gibbs shook his head. He knew he would find out soon enough. "Looks like you lot could really use rest," Gibbs observed. He didn't think that they would but just right now he wanted to let this whole thing run its course.

"If there's anything you need," Abby asked as they stood up.

"No, Abs," Gibbs shook his head and he watched them leave. He had trained his team so well but now had regretted the loyalty they showed. Gibbs felt like he was going down and didn't want to take the others with him. But he was fearful that they would follow him down in a heartbeat.

Xxxxxxxx

**Bethesda Naval Hospital**

Tony heard somebody talking. That was what had woken him up. The light hurt his eyes so he closed them once again and used his hands to feel around his body. He wanted to know what the hell had Alejandro done to him to have him wind up in hospital. He tried to sit up and check his body. At least there wasn't anything missing and he wasn't full of holes. There was something sticking out of his hand though. His eyes followed the tube up to a packet that held clear liquid.

No wonder why he was feeling fuzzy. His fuzzy mind made that connection. The drip had to be removed from his arm. There was no way of knowing what was going into his body.

"Settle down, Agent DiNozzo," a woman dressed in a nurse's uniform said to him.

"Take that out of my arm. Take that damn thing out of my arm!" Tony yelled at the nurse.

"You're safe… You're in a hospital," she said.

Tony winced as he ripped out the drip needle. His body relaxed a little when Ziva entered the room. Even though she looked worn down she was still alert and focused. "Good to see you are conscious, Tony," Ziva wasn't too sure what Tony was when they rescued him.

"I am going to place saline drip back in. Do not do this again or I may be forced to restrain your hands," the nurse said seriously.

"How did I get here? Or where is here?" He looked around. At least it was a clean hospital and he was sure it was in the States.

"You do not remember?" Ziva asked. "Not surprising really. When we found you, you didn't believe we were there and would not come willingly," Ziva explained. She remembered that in Tony's weak state he was still fighting who he perceived was his captors out to do something worse.

"How'd you find me?" Tony asked. He winced as the needle went in but still acted stoic.

"Well Bethesda here contacted us saying that someone was accessing your medical records… So we actually overloaded the hospital's computer system and allowed McGee to trace the source and that is how we located you," she explained.

"I will leave you two alone for some privacy," the nurse said as she noted the look from Ziva.

"We were airlifted into Mexico and actually Mike was there. He helped us find you," Ziva said.

"He was there," Tony suddenly sat up. "I saw him where I was being held," it came in flashes really. Franks had pushed him aside and drew his gun. Shots were fired, he was captured and was threatened to be taken apart. Then everyone was around, he was being jostled around and Franks was there.

"He was in on it," Tony said after a moment of silence. That was the only thing that made any sense.

"Well," Ziva said as she took the chair beside Tony's bed. "You feeling like that would explain your threat to drive his head through a roll. Luckily you were weak because you tried," she said.

Tony looked around the empty room. There was nobody else there. It always seemed there was one person who had his six. Something felt wrong. "Where is Gibbs?" Tony asked. Ziva didn't respond she looked unsure. "Where. Is. Gibbs?" He asked slowly.

She realized that not answering the question was not an option. "Gibbs has admitted to murder and is currently awaiting trial," she explained his absence.

Tony went to sit up again. "What the hell am I doing here then? I should be by his side," he said.

"Stay!" Ziva ordered in a loud forceful tone. "This is a terrible game, yes? Let me make things completely clear. Gibbs is ready to face things… We told him you're okay. At the moment it is safer for Paloma Reynosa to believe that you are still imprisoned. Now there is something I need from you," Ziva said.

Tony's eyebrows rose in question. He wasn't about to agree to anything without finding out what it was.

"How certain are you that it was Alejandro that held you captive?" Ziva asked.

"He stood in front of me a few times. He tried to convince me to become a spy," Tony said. Of course he wasn't about to share all the intimate details. He wasn't going to tell her how he was reduced to begging or even how close he came to agreeing to spy on NCIS.

"Good," Ziva said.

"And I'm afraid it was me who gave them the clue about the hospital thing," it was a stupid thing. He did realize what he had said but had hoped that Alejandro didn't pick up on it.

"Fortunately you did. Without it, we probably wouldn't have known you were gone," Ziva said with a slight shrug.

"What am I to do until I can be out in public again?" Tony asked with a halfhearted smile.

Ziva watched a nurse come back in to do a routine check up. "Enjoy the nurses," Ziva looked at Tony and gave a quick wink. That made him smile even more. Now there was just one other thing to do and perhaps the events could play out and perhaps lay the sordid history to rest forever.

Xxxxxxxxx

Gibbs waited in the plain office again. This time he was told his lawyer wanted to see him. Not that it mattered anyway. He didn't look up from the desk. Heavy boots hit the ground. "Usually when we meet we're on opposing sides, Special Agent Gibbs," the woman now sitting in front of him said.

Gibbs sighed and looked up. The voice was familiar, the face was a little older. The briefcase was unmistakable. "Commander Coleman," Gibbs greeted back.

"I'm here to defend you… So, a little wise to stay on my good side, Agent Gibbs," she opened her briefcase and pulled out a blue folder. "So I suggest you start by addressing me by my correct rank," Faith said to him.

Gibbs glanced at the shoulders' insignia and noted the four stripes and emblem. "Congratulations 'Captain' Coleman," Gibbs corrected himself.

"Now we got our traditional pissing contest out of the way perhaps we can get your defense under way," she told him.

"Before we start… I want to make this perfectly clear. I don't want this thrown out on a technicality. Either a guilty or not guilty verdict," Gibbs laid the cards out on the table. There was no other way.

"Want me to defend you with one arm behind my back?" Faith asked.

"If you have a problem with that…" Gibbs began to say. It surprised him. If anybody was up to the challenge he was sure it was Faith Coleman.

"Not at all… I like a challenge. Now shall we start from the beginning," Faith said in a no nonsense tone.

Xxxxxxxxxx

_**Director's Office, NCIS**_

McGee had had a good sleep. He figured he just needed it. As soon as he got back at NCIS, he got a message that Vance wanted to see him in the office ASAP. That was fine, at the moment the team was too fractured to operate effectively. He heard Gibbs describe the term as Combat Ineffective a long time ago which led Tony to talk about Blackhawk Down for ages.

"Thank you for coming in so promptly, Agent McGee. Have a seat," Vance pointed to the chair in front of his desk.

"Thank you, Sir," McGee sat down.

"I am offering you a choice," Vance got straight to the point. "Either as head of Cyber Crimes or as a transfer to the LA branch," Vance gave him the option.

McGee knew that others could tell he had been drooling over the LA branch. Several times after the Somalia incident he felt like asking for a transfer to somewhere else. Sometimes he wondered why he stayed.

"You are aware that Agent DiNozzo could be transferred, Agent Gibbs may not be able to return as an Agent," Vance wasn't one to mince words.

"I don't know what to say, Sir," McGee responded after some silence.

"Take some time too think about it, Agent McGee. That'll be all," Vance showed McGee the door.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry there was only one name I could think of that could possibly defend Gibbs at a time like this. oh and any thought on what the pilot was doing?  
**


	5. Chapter 5

**Fractured 5**

Jackson Gibbs never turned down having lunch with any ladies especially if they had done the inviting. He sat down in the crowded café and waited for Abby to bring the coffee. She did so quickly and sat down directly opposite and slid the cup to the older man.

"Don't worry about things, Jackson," Abby had noted how worried Gibbs' dad was. That was just another reason why she had taken him out. He looked in need of some downtime.

"Sometimes I wish I had your attitude, Lass," Jackson gave a half-smile to reward Abby's attempt at making him feel better.

"Captain Faith Coleman is an excellent lawyer. She'll defend him all right and everything will turn out," Abby sounded almost convincing that she found her self almost believing it as fact.

"Went so long so far apart. I should be doing more. There has to be more than just sitting and doing nothing," Jackson said as he hid his worried frown behind the steaming cup of coffee.

Abby chose her words carefully. There was still stuff going on and the NCIS team had their suspicions. There were some safety procedures in play that could backfire if things were found out. "We're doing all that we can do, Jackson. Sometimes you just have to have a little bit of faith that things will turn out

"Yeah…" He gave a noncommittal response before finishing off the cup of coffee. "There's a store a block or so down where I want to get this new suit," Jackson said. He wanted to get onto a new topic and they knew that the actual court case would start soon.

"Ooh… Retail therapy," Abby said cheerfully.

Jackson smiled as they left the Café.

Xxxxxxxxx

On the sidewalk outside the café, as soon as Abby and Jackson started walking, a black sedan pulled out of its parking space.

McGee and Ziva were sitting in their car three spaces back from them. They were working under the assumption that people were tailing Gibbs' father, perhaps to ensure that Gibbs accept and announce his guilt during the upcoming trial. Paloma Reynosa was intent on tearing the man down.

Ziva followed the car but soon was caught up behind some heavy traffic. They hoped that they were on the right track. Because if their assumption about the sedan was incorrect, they could be missing the opportunity of ID'ing some of Paloma's people.

"Hang on tight, McGee," Ziva said. That was the only warning that he received. Ziva turned into the traffic and parked it expertly in an empty parking bay facing the opposite way to the normal traffic.

"Jeez, Ziva," McGee had grabbed onto the handle and brace himself for impact. "A maneuver even Automan would be proud," McGee mentally kicked him self for making an old show reference. It was well known that whenever Gibbs was away, Tony would take on Gibbs' personality traits. And at times when Tony was away, McGee seemed to pick up Tony's personality traits.

"What?" Ziva asked. She was confused by the auto mechanic reference. Curious onlookers watched them jog pass like they were some kind of performance act.

"This isn't inconspicuous," McGee said.

They broke from a jog to a non-discreet walking pace and adjusted their jackets. Over the other side of the street they could see Jackson and Abby turning down another street. "There they are," McGee pointed at them.

"And there is our mystery car," Ziva pointed to the black sedan. "If you were tailing someone you would use a car that did not stick out like a sore thumb, yes?" Ziva said. The car could be picked out from a distance easily.

"Maybe it's the perfect thing. Everyone would think it's too suspicious to be suspicious," McGee said.

Ziva pressed her hands against the window and peered inside the vehicle. She was looking for any evidence of surveillance such as a full ashtray, fast food wrappers or empty coffee cups and radios. There was nothing… In fact, the car looked too clean.

"Nothing in there," Ziva said to McGee.

"Hey what are you doing looking in my car?" A man asked. He was carrying an almost full shopping bag in both arms and the keys were dangling from his finger.

"This is your car?" McGee asked.

The man sighed. He had just told them that it was. "Yes… This is my car. Who the hell are you?" He asked.

"Agent McGee and Off-," McGee heard Ziva clear her throat. "Agent David, NCIS," McGee showed his badge. "Care to explain why you just went from down there to here," he pointed from the direction where they had come and to the spot.

"You… You were following me?" The man asked. He tried to think of what he had done wrong.

"The paper bag?" McGee pointed to what the man was holding.

"My shopping," he responded. His arms were getting tired.

"There is no way you could have gotten from there to here and pick up all that shopping in such a short amount of time," Ziva said.

"I rung the shop up earlier today and told them that I'd be around there this point of time so they had everything ready for me," he adjusted the bag once again. "If you're going to stand there and question me at least open the door," he told them.

"No… That is about it," Ziva responded.

McGee took the keys from the guy's hand and opened up the door. "Thanks," the man said.

"Why a black sedan?" McGee asked.

"I like the way it looks," the man said. "Now, if that is all. I really have a full schedule," he told them. They went back to the car and remained silent about the incident.

Xxxxxxxxxx

Courtroom

_**Opening Arguments**_

Faith stood up and adjusted her uniform. She had spent a lot of time on the opening and closing statements and then practicing her delivery in front of a full-length mirror. This helped her form a friendly and honest look.

"Over the course of this trial… The prosecutors will attempt to convince you that Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs went out with premeditation and murdered one Mexican citizen, Pedro Hernandez… You even may hear words like assassination, coldhearted killer thrown around by the prosecutor. The defense will prove that Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs is neither a coldhearted killer or capable of assassination. In fact… Years of dedication to law enforcement are in fact his way of making up for actions of the past. This remorse is proof that Agent Gibbs is not the killer that the prosecution will try and portray him as," Faith had deliberately kept her opening statement short and straight to the point.

Paloma Reynosa looked at her notes before standing up. She wasn't a lawyer but she knew how to argue a point and withdraw information out of people. "Nobody knows better than federal agencies that murder is murder no matter at what level. The defense is out to convince you that the law does not apply to one of its own top investigators," she said and took a glass of water and appeared much more relaxed. "And if the law doesn't apply to seasoned… Lead… Federal Agents, then where does it stop? They've mentioned all the years in his profession… I intend to show a behavioral pattern that clearly portrays Agent Gibbs as a cold, calculating and cruel to even those who are considered close to him and very capable of murder," Paloma and Gibbs exchanged glances as she sat down.

Gibbs quickly surveyed the people sitting behind him. He was resigned to the fact that nothing would ever be the same again. His father sat there in silent support like he said he would.

What was left of his team were beside him. The team he had trained damn well. McGee was a computer specialist that he had turned into a field agent, a good one at that. Abby Scuito… A forensic expert who had filled in a void in his heart. She was there for him and he was there for her. Ziva David… A former Mossad Officer who shot and killed Ari and protected him. Even if she did it under orders. Her hard exterior deteriorated to reveal a soft and caring woman.

A chair separated them and Ducky. Ducky was his oldest friend. But way more than that for Ducky knew his deepest secrets or suspected at the very least. Even through hell and back, Ducky stood by him. Palmer was the last in the row…the young assistant had grown up a lot since joining NCIS. Selfishly, Gibbs thought that maybe he had a hand in that as well as Ducky.

In the sea of faces, there was one that wasn't there. That was whom the empty seat must have belonged to. Abby gave him a curt nod before placing her bag onto the empty seat and patted it. Even through it all… They were willing to be there for him. That could be either a good thing or a bad thing.

Xxxxxxxxxx

**NCIS**

McGee yawned when they got out of the elevator and into the bullpen. Listening to some of the questioning and the opening statements accompanied with other discussions reminded McGee of lectures at University. Sometimes that could be more tiring than physical exercise at times.

"Well us following the followers has not worked out," Ziva said as she sat down at her desk. They were following Jackson around to see if they could find the people they assumed were following Jackson. It was possible they would act if things weren't to go Paloma's way.

"Maybe they're staying out of sight because they know who we are," McGee stated. That could be the plausible assumption. "Great," he slumped into his chair.

"I thought of that possibility," Ducky said as he removed his coat and placed it on the table. "When I was a teen in Aberdeen… There was a gang of lads who ruled the roost. When they wanted to scare people they would send a couple of strong people from their group to follow them around as intimidation. Even just the sight of them will be enough," Ducky said as he reminisced about his year in Aberdeenshire.

"But at times when they only want to see what people were up to and spy. They would use people from their gang that were unknown members but trusted," Ducky said as he waited for Ziva or McGee to respond. "Who would be someone that is very low key and would be trusted enough to follow Jackson around and draw out those people?" Ducky asked.

Ziva and McGee looked at each other then at Ducky and then at Palmer. "Palmer?" McGee asked.

"No… Not that I think young Mister Palmer wouldn't be up to the challenge… More of let's say… Who we haven't seen for such a long time," Ducky suggested. He wasn't too surprised that they weren't sure. "NCIS Special Agent Afloat Stan Burley," Ducky told them. "I have been keeping him up to date and will be in later," he had to wait around for the young man to show up.

"That could work," McGee said. Ziva and McGee had met the former Senior Field Agent a couple of times whenever he's in town.

Xxxxxxxxx

NCIS: HQ

Stan Burley had the large bag slung over his shoulder. It was a little after midnight and he was dog-tired but well informed of the situation. Doctor Mallard had filled him in on things and his job was made perfectly clear.

"Agent Stan Burley," he heard someone get his attention. The Director walked down the steps and into the bullpen. "Thank you for getting here so promptly," he said to the younger man.

Stan had never met Director Vance face to face other than on video conference call. "You know what you have to do?" Vance knew that the Kennedy's Agent Afloat was a former Agent of Jethro Gibbs and due to personal reasons decided to make a career out of being an Agent Afloat. Whenever the position was available he tried to take it.

"Yes… Don has explained it to me. Really, I need a shower and some sleep. I could never sleep on a chopper," Stan responded.

"You can use the showers…" Vance told him.

"So… How is Jethro? Tony and the team?" Stan asked as he put the towel over his shoulder. Vance folded his arms. "That good huh?" Stan read Vance's body language.

He walked towards the elevator with his shaving kit. "Who would've thought I've come to NCIS and having a shower and relaxing?" He laughed. It was a funny thought. Too bad he couldn't go and see Agent Gibbs or Tony until his job had finished. After this it'd be like he would be working out of NCIS by keeping an eye out on Gibbs' father. He had only met Gibbs' father a couple of times. But that was a long time ago.

He turned around to face the elevator doors once he was inside. A black hand reached in and stopped the doors from closing. "I want a word with you," Vance said as he stepped inside.

Stan nodded. Vance didn't say anything until he stopped the elevator mid-descent. Stan felt his heart rate quicken. "Do you mind talking to me while going down," he said to the Director. Gibbs had made the Elevator Conferences famous.

"Problem?" Vance asked.

"No, Sir… It's just. I'm really in a hurry to shower. I smell traveled," Stan responded. There seemed to be a certain smell you pick up if you've traveled many miles in a short amount of time. Though it may be just psychological.

"Fair enough, Agent Burley," Vance said. He pressed the button to restart the descent and Stan breathed a sigh of relief. "One of the difficult tasks of Director is making sure that no matter what the circumstances are, to ensure that the NCIS is running as smoothly as possible," Vance said without facing Stan.

"I understand that, Sir," Stan said. He wasn't sure what this talk was about. Perhaps it was his assumption that he could take a shower. Perhaps it was the fact that it was Donald who had called him in.

"That involves a lot of anticipation," Vance continued on.

"I always say anticipate everything," Stan said to him. That was what he thought was his own number one rule.

"If Agent Gibbs is found guilty there's no way he'll be working at NCIS. Even if not guilty he might not return to NCIS. You have an excellent record, Agent Burley. What I'm saying… There may be a lead agent position about to become available. I think you'd be perfect to head up the new team," Vance told him. He was planning on doing away with the old style of NCIS and putting together a new team. One that can be loyal to NCIS and not just themselves.

"What about…" Stan was just about to mention the current team especially the current Senior Field Agent.

"I'm putting the cards on the table, Agent Burley. Don't give me an answer right away. Just give yourself time to think about it. Maybe come and see me again when the dust has settled.

"Yes, Sir," Stan replied. He wasn't sure how he would feel about becoming a lead agent. He never thought about that before. Sure, being stationed at home base would be advantageous but he liked being on the Carriers. There was rarely a dull moment. It would be a tough choice but the Director had given him some time to mull it over.

Vance stayed in the elevator when Stan stepped out.


	6. Chapter 6

_**COURTROOM**_

Faith went the friendly approach first. She had called a couple of character witnesses and wasn't surprised that Paloma Reynosa soon called Agent Jethro Gibbs to the stand. From early on, Faith had prepped Gibbs relentlessly on the possible questions that might be asked. It would've been easier except for the fact that Paloma was not a trained and educated lawyer.

Gibbs recited the oath as he turned around. This time it was just Abby and his father sitting in the courtroom along with a couple of unknown faces. Of course NCIS wouldn't stop because he was on trial. He was but one man. After taking a seat he drunk from the glass of water it was too appear cool, calm and collected.

"You were a Gunnery Sergeant in the United States Marine Core weren't you?" Paloma was getting straight to the point.

"Yes," Gibbs answered being careful to only give as much information as was being requested. If the woman in front of him wanted more, she'd have to ask the right question.

"What was your main duty?" Paloma asked him.

"Marine Sniper," Gibbs answered.

"To be a Marine Sniper in the Marine Core you had to better than average... Yes?" Paloma questioned.

"Yes," Gibbs answered.

"Were you an above average Sniper in your unit?" She was getting impatient with the responses that were refusing to give too much away.

Gibbs took another deliberate sip of water before answering. "I'm good. Whether it is above average skill... I can't be objective. You'll have to ask my CO or other people," Gibbs said.

"In your opinion... Are you above average?" Paloma asked, wanting a straight answer.

"In my opinion... I'm an just a Marine Sniper of average skill," Gibbs said. There were some skillful soldiers out there.

"But you're better than most," Paloma pressed further.

"Objection... Prosecution asked for Agent Gibbs' personal opinion and he gave it," Faith looked up from her notes.

"After you found out your wife and child were killed and you visited NCIS... Did Mike Franks leave the file unattended so you could see the name of their prime suspect... One Pedro Hernandez?" Paloma continued on.

"Objection... Relevance," Faith interrupted once again.

"I'm showing that the series of events that shows premeditation," Paloma defended her line of questioning.

"Your Honor... One Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs is on trial here not NCIS," Faith reminded them. Sometimes as a lawyer it was easy to get sidetracked.

"Did you think that Mike Franks showed you that file knowing full well what you were capable of and what frame of mind you were in," Paloma was like a dog at a bone.

"Objection... Agent Gibbs only knew the then Agent Mike Franks as an investigator into the death of his wife and child. There's no way he could ascertain what was on Mike Franks' mind at the time," Faith objected once again.

"I'll rephrase... As the seasoned investigator that you are now, do you believe that Agent Mike Franks deliberately left the folder out knowing what you would do with the information?" Paloma worded the question more carefully.

Gibbs rubbed his lips with his finger before answering the question. "No... I don't believe so," Gibbs eventually responded. He did believe that that was the fact but it was always impossible too tell. On the other hand there was no way he was bringing anybody down with him.

"So you're certain..."

"Objection... She asked for his opinion. Opinion can't be taken as fact," Faith sighed and waited for Paloma to sit down before standing up. Amateurs were difficult to go up against. At least with seasoned professionals you knew when to pick up their game. There was a danger of under doing it whenever there was someone who obviously didn't know their way around the courtroom.

"Agent Gibbs... When you left Kuwait after learning about the deaths of Shannon and Kelly... What was on your mind?" Faith asked him.

"I don't know," Gibbs answered. Memory of that dark time was actually a blur still.

"What no thought of vengeance. You didn't leave Kuwait with the thought of killing whoever was responsible? You didn't go to Agent Franks with any intent on going after the person who killed your family did you?" Faith asked.

"It's hazy... I can't remember," Gibbs answered to make sure that he neither confirmed nor denied what was on his mind.

"On any normal given day how busy would you say it is at NCIS?" Faith questioned.

"Objection... Relevance," Paloma interjected.

"It is to determine that the leaving of the folder out by Agent Franks was entirely accidental and not part of a predetermined conspiracy as the prosecution is trying to convince the court of," Faith told them. It was the first time since the opening statement she played a little to the courtroom. Any good lawyer would know when to talk to the courtroom and when not to.

"On any given day NCIS has up to five cases going on at once and that's on a quiet day. And back in the day I talked to Mike there were no video conferencing, not much in the way of computers. A lot of the time was spent walking from point A to Point B just to hear information or to relay it," Gibbs answered.

"So you had no intention of killing anybody until you saw the name of the NCIS prime suspect?" Faith reiterated the point.

"Too the best of my recollection," Gibbs answered.

Gibbs sat down at the Defense desk. "I would like to call Miss Abigail Scuito to the stand," Faith said, not looking up to see Abby take the oath.

"Objection," Paloma said almost immediately.

Faith's ears pricked up as she wondered what the prosecution could be objecting at. Perhaps the inexperience was showing through again.

"Miss Abigail Scuito has been working alongside Agent Gibbs for several years. Her ability to be impartial and professional is highly questionable," Paloma was certain that she would say anything for the NCIS Agent and therefore it would be useless questioning her.

Faith looked through her notes before looking up again. "Agreed... Due to Miss Scuito's ties as the Prosecution put, it to the Defendant. Any evidence obtained by Miss Scuito should be inadmissible in court due to her close relationship with Jethro Gibbs," Faith saw the mistake and pounced on it as any good lawyer was trained to do.

"Wait," Paloma argued.

"You're the one that brought it up... Which I believe is a very valid point. Anything she touched on the case can be tainted," Faith annoyed her opponent by praising her.

"That's," Paloma continued arguing.

"That's the way it is. You can't have it every way," Faith placed her hands on her hips and straightened up.

Paloma turned to face her as well. "Why you...," she said. The argument was soon interrupted by the sound of a gavel and an announcement of an adjournment.

"Welcome to my yard," Faith whispered before standing next to Gibbs.

Gibbs waited until Paloma was out of earshot before standing up. "What in damn hell are you doing?" He asked.

"I'm defending you, Agent Gibbs. The best way I can. I'm after a not-guilty verdict. What do you want me to do?" Faith asked. She closed her briefcase.

Gibbs swallowed. He wasn't about to explain his displeasure at things seemingly going his way. Things would become clearer if it went south. No wonder why people were choosing to avoidance. There was a time when he thought about swallowing the barrel of a gun and pulling the trigger. Perhaps he should have was the thought running through his head.

"Are you alright, Agent Gibbs?" Faith noticed the strange look on his face.

"Yes, I'm fine," Gibbs responded automatically. "And I think it's safe to drop the agent title," Gibbs said to her.

xxxxxxxxx

**Two days Later**

The court was to start again on the Monday. Things were getting really heated between the Defense, who was a constant professional and the Prosecution who was out for vengeance. Even when things were going their way it was a highly volatile situation like a ticking time bomb with no clock.

Stan Burley had been tailing Jackson Gibbs as ordered since he was a very low profile agent. That way he could easily spot anyone following the older man by watching him closely. For an old man, Jackson Gibbs was very active. And it wasn't until the afternoon when he got back to the hotel. That was when he noticed a familiar looking dirty brown Sedan pulling up to the front of Jackson's hotel.

Stan waited for the three men to enter the hotel before pulling out his cell phone and calling McGee and Ziva about the Sedan he had seen around a few times during the day. Now to see it here convinced him that they had found the people who were following Jackson. They told him he that they were on his way.

"Agent Burley... NCIS," Stan showed the female clerk his identification. He waited until she finished examining it. "Three men who had just entered a couple of minutes ago... Can you tell me which rooms they are staying in, please?" He asked.

"Thomas Veladez, Richard Williams and Harold Yamezo. They are staying in 245, 244 and 230," she answered him.

The names sounded like the old age Tom, Dick and Harry pseudonyms. "Which room is a Jackson Gibbs staying in?" He asked. He pulled out the cell and called the others with the details.

"You're in luck... 242," she answered.

The others were on their way and Stan removed his Sig from the holster. That was when the hotel clerk walked around and came out from behind the desk and looked panicked.

She grabbed his arm. "You can't do that... I'm only on probation. Please. I need this job! I'll get the sack if trouble happens," the clerk was pleading.

Stan knew that people handled stressful situations differently. Some step up to the plate while others crumbled. "Hey, relax," Stan said as he patted her upper arm. "Claire...," that's what her name tag said. "Things should run smoothly but if you hold onto me like that and begin pleading then there's more chance it'll all go to hell, okay?" He made sure to keep his tone calm and friendly.

She let go and began chewing on a fingernail nervously.

"An Agent McGee and and Agent David will be coming in shortly. When they do... Can you tell them that Stan Burley has gone to the second floor via the staircase?" Stan asked.

She thought about this for a second before nodding.

"Good girl," Stan said to her smile and return to her desk. "Wait...," Stan turned around. Claire pointed to the direction of the staircase. "Thank you," he said.

xxxxxxxxx

Stan stood at the door that led to the second floor. The experiences on board aircraft carriers had taught him a few tricks such as staying below eye level when peering around the corner. He opened the door ever so slightly so he could just see down the hallway. The hallway was empty which was a worrying sign in its self.

A door did open and close but nobody came out. He pressed his face to the slight opening of the staircase door to get a better look down the hallway. That meant the elevator was technically behind him and he couldn't get a look at that part of the second floor.

"Hey," Ziva stood behind Stan in a crouched position.

"Give me some warning before you do that?" Stan said. "Where's Agent McGee?"

"He is taking the elevator," Ziva answered. "It will be a good way to get a good look of the elevator section of the hallway.

xxxxxxxxxxx

McGee adjusted the suit while he waited for the elevator doors to open. As soon as the doors swished open he nonchalantly walked down the hallway. Someone left the first hotel room and entered the elevator.

He knocked on the door that lead to the staircase. "Clear," he said, liking this role of being the front man.

Stan and Ziva stood up and joined McGee in the hallway. They began passing the doors, growing more cautious as they approached the four rooms. They had to think of a plan of attack. "Too bad, we don't have a fourth person," McGee commented.

"Wait, let's go back... I have an idea," Stan gave the 'follow me' signal that were often employed in the noisy sections of the Carriers.

* * *

_**A/N: I had to cut this chapter there because it would be getting too long otherwise. Anyway, due to time constraint I haven't been able to explore all the possible storylines i was going to but the storylines I'm not doing have nothing to do with the main plot. Also, I'm not too sure if the courtcase part is done right. Only knowledge I get about those parts is from TV. Hope it's realistic enough to be still enjoyable. And nobody commented on the Automan reference to Ziva's driving... I thought that was pretty funny**_


	7. Chapter 7

**FRACTURED**

Stan Burley was about to leave the elevator but turned around before exiting. "I feel like a Man in Black... Like I should be out fighting an alien invasion or something," Stan adjusted his 'borrowed' black suit. Ziva gave him a Wine bottle.

He adjusted his tie before knocking on Jackson Gibbs' hotel room door. "This is a complimentary bottle of Wine," Stan said as a young man let him inside. "Occasionally we hand out complimentary gifts," he put on an upper class accent.

"Sounds like bribery," the young man said. His heavy accent made him hard to expand.

"That's quite a strong word, Mister Gibbs," Stan said as he looked around the apartment and took a a couple of wine glasses from the cupboard.

"Actually... I'm Mister Jackson Gibbs," Jackson came out from the bathroom.

"Greetings from Hotel Management. Always say that bribery is a horrible word. We always refer to it as Encouragement to Come Again," Stan smiled. Jackson sat down and Stan approached him. It didn't escape his peripheral vision that the other man moved alongside him.

"As you will see this Champagne is a 1957 of the Plymouth Vineyard," Stan explained. Truthfully, he didn't know what the hell he was saying, it was just a matter of stringing some words together that sounded fancy.

Jackson put on his glasses and studied the bottle more closely that Stan had presented him. "According to this it's a 1974," Jackson stated.

"I brought the wrong bottle," Stan said to him as he ripped the bottle out of Jackson's hand. "Sorry for the inconvenience," he said.

"Uncultured American," the man laughed.

Without turning around, Stan swung the bottle from front to back with such speed, the man could hear it coming but didn't have enough reaction time to block or duck. Half of the glass bottle shattered on impact, sending shards and wine everywhere. He quickly tied the man to the handrail in the bathroom with his handcuffs.

"Who are you?" Jackson asked as he helped Stan tie a cloth tightly over the man's mouth.

"You don't remember me? Stan Burley... I'm with Agents McGee and Ziva," Stan took out the Sig and made sure it was ready to use.

"Stan? Long time no see," Jackson said.

"Keep an eye on him. Knock him out again if you need to," Stan said as he quickly went back to the hallway. He nodded to the McGee and Ziva who went to the other rooms. Stan knocked on the door a couple of times. He heard the dull sound of booted footsteps approaching the door. They stopped and the doorknob began to turn.

Before the door fully opened, Stan leaned back and drove his foot through the door. It was a move to kick the door hard enough to knock the person on the other side off their feet a little. There was the desired effect and Stan went rushing in before the person had a chance to recover. He pistol whipped the man since he didn't have anything to tie him up with.

McGee heard people approaching their way. With it being a high-tension situation, he already had his Sig out before he was even conscious of it. Something dropped to the floor.

"NCIS," McGee identified him self to the people approaching.

A shot was fired and that told the three agents that there was no chance for a quiet resolution. Soon the hallway long hallway was filled with gunfire. The agents rounded the bend and continued firing.

"Wound them," McGee said to the others with his voice raised loud enough to be heard. A bullet passed by his ear and slammed into the door frame behind him. Terrified screams could be heard from hotel guests from their room.

"We got a hostage," One of the people said.

McGee checked his pockets and he waved to the others and gave them the shh sign. "Maybe we can negotiate a peaceful surrender," McGee called out. "Hold it!" He used an authority filled voice.

"We are getting out of here," the man said.

McGee rolled his eyes and began trying to mime a small square or round object. "We can't allow you to do that," he said. Ziva had been able to step into a hotel room. She brought out a wallet and McGee shook his head.

"We will not think twice about beginning to kill people on our way out," a man called out. The firing had stopped.

Ziva pulled out a ball and McGee shrugged his shoulders. He then got her attention again and began miming pulling something out and making wrapping motions quickly. "Al foil or something," McGee shouted as quietly as possible. Ziva managed to quickly scrounge around for al foil. She tossed them both to McGee who caught it.

"We can't do that. Anything but surrender'll make things worse for you," McGee called out. He had holstered his Sig and began wrapping the ball in the foil. "We're going to come into view with our weapons drawn and we'll talk face to face and put an end to this... Nobody has to get hurt," McGee continued his negotiation.

"As soon as we can we will shoot you," another one of the men answered.

McGee tossed the foil-covered ball in one hand. A couple of shots rung out once again. "Fire in the hole!" McGee shouted as he tossed the ball towards the people. The foil was messily wrapped around and uneven which made the rolling ball occasionally bounce off its course.

The shooting stopped. They didn't think of the fact that US Federal agents wouldn't be carrying grenades or any kind of explosive device. Commonsense won out. And they leaped out of the way in anticipation of an explosion.

"Fuck!" One of them called out. And there were some foreign words being shouted.

McGee and Ziva quickly approached the people with their weapons aimed at them. "Do not move," Ziva told them. McGee called in for back up. They didn't have the ability to take the five people in.

"A handy trick, McGee," Ziva said once he had finished.

"When you don't have the necessary equipment... Sometimes one just has to McGee it," he smiled. Nobody commented and he felt sheepish for attempting to reference something that not many have heard of.

"Anyone else around?" Stan asked Jackson who was now out in the hallway.

"Those are the only ones around," Jackson answered as he studied the faces of the men that were following him around.

"One of you head down to the front and wait for the other agent," Stan ordered. It was easy to fall into being the boss.

McGee faced him. Being the current second longest serving member of Team Gibbs, he felt like his toes were being trod on. "Wait a minute," he said.

"I forgot... You're in charge. I'm just an assisting agent," Stan said and thought about things again. "Okay then you wait up here and I'll go down to the front," he told him before realizing that he was doing the exact same thing just differently. "Alright... What you think?" Stan asked McGee.

"Ziva will go down and wait for Agent Nichols and we'll stay up here," McGee said and Stan nodded. McGee wiped his brow and stood there. He didn't say anything and felt he didn't need to.

Xxxxxxxxx

_**Courtroom: Tuesday**_

It had been a full morning of portraying Gibbs as a cold killer. Faith Coleman could call all the character witnesses she could and Paloma managed to shoot down almost all. She watched Gibbs looking around. None of his fellow NCIS agents had abandoned him. And she thought the NCIS Agent was looking more broken as time went on.

"Comrades abandoned you, Mister Gibbs?" Paloma said to Gibbs.

Gibbs didn't respond. He wasn't about to give her the satisfaction by telling her how much it was bothering him. The door to the courtroom opened and in walked Jackson, Ducky, McGee, Tony, Ziva and Stan, Abby and Palmer.

Paloma froze... She hadn't heard anything from Alejandro about Tony being rescued or escaping. Her breathing stopped when he showed a cocky lopsided grin. She had been so busy with the courtroom that only now she realized that there had been no contact.

"Hey, Boss," Tony greeted as if nothing had happened.

Xxxxxxxx

Paloma and Faith questioned people. It had turned into one major powerplay. One would set a few questions up and have the other one discredit it. Neither of them got the upper-hand. The Courtroom Pitbull took on the rabid wolverine. Everyone watched with vested interest.

Mike Franks walked in, barely noticed by anybody. He didn't sit down but bent over Tony's shoulder to talk into his ear. Tony nodded without turning around and got the attention of McGee, Stan and Ziva. The chatting got Abby's attention.

"Silence," the Judge was annoyed at the talking going on behind the defense.

Everybody nodded.

"Quiet! You will stay silent," the Judge raised his voice. Gibbs had turned around and tried to silence them with a look.

"No," Tony stood up. It wasn't long until the Team joined him.

"No?" The judge asked. "Sit down, shut up or I'll have you removed," was the threat.

"Come on... What this man has 'allegedly' done, he should be commended. Given a medal for it. Pedro Hernandez was a leader of a drug cartel and responsible for the destruction of countless lives. For a country that has supposedly toughened its stance on drugs is prosecuting a man for taking down one of the biggest drug dealers of the Twentieth Century. That and a killer," Tony raised his voice.

"DiNozzo!" Gibbs shouted.

"You will be charged with contempt," the judge added.

"Agent DiNozzo... This isn't helping," Faith tried to shut him up.

"Yeah," Stan agreed. "God knows how many lives were saved with that scum wiped out," Abby and McGee were beginning to bang on the rail in front of them loudly.

"Stop it," Gibbs hissed.

Nothing that made any sense was now being shouted. They were just being as loud and disruptive as they could. Soon enough, it was clear the judge had had enough.

Xxxxxxxxxx

_**Outside Courtroom**_

Paloma Reynosa was working out her next move. She was relieved at the peoples' idiotic outburst in court since it gave her time to think of a variation of the strategy while they were being held or charged. Alejandro... She needed to speak to Alejandro and find out what the hell happened on his end of things.

She had the cell to her ear when she saw the small television attached to the wall. There was a ZNN news bulletin on and there was a young American reporter in front of the Mexican government building. But the thing that stood out was a picture of Alejandro in the top left hand corner. The words on the bottom of the screen said that the Official Alejandro had been killed in a hit and run car accident.

Paloma knew that in more times than one, that a high profile Mexican hit and run was assassination. Needing fresh air, she briskly walked to the front of the courthouse.

Xxxxxx

**Courtroom**

The case had reconvened but there was no sign of the Prosecutor Paloma Reynosa. They had given her some time. A middle aged man dressed in an expensive suit approached the judge and showed him a card and identification before taking the Prosecution's desk.

"I have to object," Faith said.

The man held up his hand to silence her and he cleared his throat. "If I may issue a statement to the court," he said in a deeply accented voice. "I am the Public Relations Officer... Malas Sierra. Forgive me for this breach of American Court Protocol...

"I have been sent here by the Mexican authority to set the record straight... The killing of one Pedro Hernandez was a sanctioned act by our military. Jethro Gibbs did enter Mexico at the same time but I submit a signed report by our officials that states and shows the evidence that Jethro Gibbs was not responsible or involved in our operation. Jethro Gibbs, an American Marine Sniper, with a grudge against Hernandez and therefore made a perfect scapegoat. Recent events has forced us to come clean so that no more lives are destroyed by our lies... Thank you," Malas said as he closed his notebook.

Xxxxxxx

**Interview Room**

Gibbs and Malas stood in the interview room either side of the table. "What are you doing?" Gibbs asked.

"You are not please, Agent Gibbs? You want to know why we're doing this? There has been a group of us who have been trying to keep Mexico stable. Hernandez had killed and destroyed man Mexican lives... Actually, you did us a favor but now these things are coming to light we have to stop people from finding out that we needed an American to come in to our borders and kill a drug lord it would've made us look incompetent to our countrymen and others," Malas gave the reason to what was going on.

"How will I know things won't turn around and bite me on the ass further down the line?" Gibbs asked, specifically referring to Paloma.

"It will not come up again. It has been tidied up," Malas answered.

**Courtroom**

Everybody in the courtroom stood up when the judge prepared to read the verdict. They waited in anticipation. "Now I know how the A-Team felt," Tony whispered quietly.

"Leroy Jethro Gibbs... Due to the new evidence presented... For the murder of Pedro Hernandez we find you not guilty," the judge said.

Everybody erupted with a loud cheers and shouts of congratulations.


	8. Chapter 8

Fractured Final

For the last couple of years, the Mallard Estate had its quiet times. Especially since Mrs. Mallard moving out of home and her eventual passing. But on this day it was buzzing with activity. With the Hernandez and Mexico saga behind them, Team Gibbs could concentrate on what's going on around the corner.

"We're still waiting on a couple of others," Ducky gave the reason as to why they weren't in full swing party mode yet.

Team Gibbs, Jackson and Ducky were celebrating their victory. Abby opened the door after hearing the knocking. Stan Burley entered, carrying a carton of beer on his shoulder. Everybody was ready to celebrate hard. On top of that, Gibbs wanted to know the whole story. His team had done what he had been training them to do and then more… Even though he hadn't come right out and say it, he was damn proud of his team. They had learned well.

"Hey Stan," Gibbs greeted as they stocked the refrigerator.

"I have extended an invitation to Lewis… The Pilot. From what I heard from Timothy and Ziva, he played an important part. Though he couldn't guarantee being on time," Ducky said.

"The more the merrier," Abby commented in a chirpy voice.

There was something about the pilot that McGee just didn't like. At times, Lewis was unnaturally calm and while other times he was very defensive.

"Guess that's him now," Ducky said as he went to answer the door.

"I know I'm late," Lewis said as he dropped the carton of pre-mixed Johnny Walker cans onto the table. "Turn the news on," he said while pointing to the small television set on the counter.

Another news alert was coming through. The reporter, Rick Leviathan stood outside a government building dressed in his trademark blue shirt. "This is a ZNN Alert," He said. The name Paloma Reynosa appeared on the bottom of the screen. "I'm Rick Leviathan. At approximately 1900 hrs last night… Seven pm. A light airplane, a Cessna crashed on the Mexican side of the Mexico US border. According to the passenger manifest and Mexican authorities one of the passengers was Paloma Reynosa… For those not familiar with Mexico's criminal element… Paloma Reynosa took control of the Hernandez Cartel after her father, Pedro Hernandez was gunned down… This is a statement issued by the Mexican Authorities…

"Even though an accident, the death of Paloma Reynosa has struck a powerful blow for the side of the Law. Like a decapitated chicken there is no control. We are not declaring this a victory over the Cartel since chicken's become unpredictable once there head has been severed and therefore even more vigilance will be exercised… We will continue to approach this situation with aggressive caution," Rick read from the piece of paper.

"What happened to you?" McGee asked, pointing to an area of broken skin on Lewis' cheek.

"Got in a dust up at a bar," Lewis answered quickly as he caught the bottle opener and opened a bottle in one fluid motion. "Great way to relieve stress but it's usually damn well frowned upon by brass," Lewis laughed.

"So anyone going to tell me what went down?" Gibbs asked.

"Hard to say exactly," Tony was the first one to answer. He remembered being held prisoner in Mexico and then waking up in Bethesda.

McGee picked up the conversation. "We didn't know a thing was wrong 'til we got a call from Bethesda about someone trying to hack Tony's medical records. So Vance, Abby, Me and Ziva flooded the hospital's computers to buy us enough time to trace the source," McGee explained.

"That was when Lewis, me and a team went and extracted Tony. We were fortunate to have assistance and a green light from Mexico," Ziva added.

Lewis had cleared his throat a couple of times. There were some things that needed to be kept secret. Ducky saw the reaction. "Anything said within these walls will never be repeated. You can speak freely. You'd never believe the secrets kept by the walls," Ducky said. People outside the close knit group usually couldn't understand the goings on.

"After hearing that you handed yourself in, Boss… We assumed that someone was also threatening your father so we followed him around while we managed to convince Tony to stay hidden for awhile," McGee said.

"And that's why I kept taking you around every chance I got," Abby piped up.

"That wasn't working. So that's when I got permission to bring Stan back so he could tail Jackson since the people may not have recognized him," Ducky said.

"Tailing someone to spot their tailors while trying to remain unspotted yourself is more harder than it sounds. You move around a lot, Jackson. It wasn't until I followed him to his hotel that we found them," Stan answered.

"We ended up in a shootout in the hotel hallway and eventually subdued the people who worked for Paloma," Ziva added.

"Tim here got a ball and wrapped it in al-foil then rolled it towards them and yelled out 'Fire-in-the-hole' well, I never seen anybody dive out the way so quickly," Stan said. His tone growing in excitement as he relayed the events.

"So then we actually took Reynosa's men to a rendezvous and handed the prisoners over. Fortunately they were very well behaved in the Chopper and talked things over with the authority rep," Lewis said.

"He kept them in line by threatening to send them cartwheeling out of the helicopter," Ziva chimed in.

"It works… Thankfully, average Joe Citizen can't tell the difference between a Belle Huey and a Blackhawk that's high up. So we were able to virtually sneak around," Lewis added as he took another drink.

"So when we came into the courtroom and caused all that ruckus… Franks actually told us that they were going to release information about Alejandro's death and forcibly extract Paloma to deal with her. So we actually went like we did as to minimize any chance of extra damage caused if things went sour. In other words, let Paloma go out on her own," Tony said.

"I was trying to give you hints that Tony was okay, Gibbs," Abby said.

"The bag on the seat," Gibbs nodded. That made sense now.

They stood around the table the large counter. The rest of the celebration had turned into nothing more than drinking. Soon it was almost time to call it a night. Each of those that were responsible in the main plan and immediately around it. They raised their drinks in a form of a salute too each other. With the events all wrapped up, they felt able to move on and close this chapter…


End file.
